WEBVTT - Chapter Twenty Three 0:00:02.120 --> 0:00:08.200 Chapter twenty three, Sasha Rolling Fuck trundled forward, crunching its 0:00:08.200 --> 0:00:10.520 way over the Texas Plains and leaving a carpet of 0:00:10.520 --> 0:00:14.280 flattened grass and broken trees in its wake. And Sasha Marian, 0:00:14.400 --> 0:00:17.000 situated in a little purple building atop one of the 0:00:17.000 --> 0:00:21.360 city's tallest spires, couldn't quite believe her eyes. In spite 0:00:21.400 --> 0:00:23.639 of its many wheels, the city didn't look like the 0:00:23.720 --> 0:00:25.959 kind of thing that should be able to move. It 0:00:26.079 --> 0:00:29.160 was as if the Empire State Building had taken up jogging. 0:00:30.080 --> 0:00:32.400 Sasha had been more or less alone since the war 0:00:32.440 --> 0:00:35.239 Council had concluded. She'd wanted to go up to the 0:00:35.240 --> 0:00:37.560 bar with Manny and Roland, since they were the only 0:00:37.600 --> 0:00:40.720 people here she even sort of knew, but their conversation 0:00:40.760 --> 0:00:43.519 had seemed a private sort of thing. At first, she 0:00:43.640 --> 0:00:45.840 thought that her hosts had made an oversight in leaving 0:00:45.840 --> 0:00:48.479 her unwatched. Surely they wouldn't let someone who had been 0:00:48.520 --> 0:00:50.959 their enemy just a few days ago wander freely through 0:00:51.000 --> 0:00:53.920 their home. But as the hours went by, it became 0:00:53.960 --> 0:00:58.360 clear that's exactly what they'd done, so Sasha explored it 0:00:58.440 --> 0:01:01.400 had been exhilarating. Actually, every inch of the city was 0:01:01.480 --> 0:01:04.560 different and strange and new to her. Across the gantries 0:01:04.600 --> 0:01:07.399 there were numerous market stalls with fresh meat and produce. 0:01:07.760 --> 0:01:10.720 At first she recognized all the foods, but the higher 0:01:10.720 --> 0:01:14.120 and further she went, the stranger everything seemed. The meat 0:01:14.160 --> 0:01:17.320 went from beef and chicken to alligator in zebra and mammoth, 0:01:17.360 --> 0:01:21.200 and eventually something Sasha thought might be from an actual dinosaur. 0:01:21.760 --> 0:01:23.880 She was sure it was all lab grown, and the 0:01:23.920 --> 0:01:27.440 produce was certainly gene modified. At one point, she came 0:01:27.440 --> 0:01:29.800 across a kiosk filled with fruit that had been tweaked 0:01:29.800 --> 0:01:32.880 to take the shape of gigantic erect penises. There were 0:01:32.880 --> 0:01:36.760 penis watermelons, penis oranges, penis apples, and even bags of 0:01:36.760 --> 0:01:40.800 tiny penis shaped grapes. She knew she should have felt disgusted. 0:01:41.080 --> 0:01:44.640 Two weeks ago, Sasha would have been horrified, but somehow 0:01:44.680 --> 0:01:48.440 she just wasn't. She felt a vague sense of unease 0:01:48.520 --> 0:01:51.280 awkwardness at the sight of so many genitals, but after 0:01:51.320 --> 0:01:53.760 all she'd seen in the Heavenly Kingdom, it didn't exactly 0:01:53.840 --> 0:01:57.640 horrify her either, How could it. The fondl boats were 0:01:57.680 --> 0:02:00.920 another matter. The sight and the strange sky's sweet smell 0:02:01.000 --> 0:02:03.680 that wafted out of the grinding, groping crowd inside it 0:02:03.760 --> 0:02:07.000 made her queasy. This is exactly as depraved as Pastor 0:02:07.000 --> 0:02:09.959 Mike said it would be, she thought. But she also thought, 0:02:10.480 --> 0:02:12.680 is this really worse than all that violence and death? 0:02:12.960 --> 0:02:17.000 Who were they hurting? The Lord? Said a shrill, small 0:02:17.080 --> 0:02:19.639 voice in the back of her mind. Why would God 0:02:19.680 --> 0:02:22.800 hate this and not the hanging of good people? Sasha wondered, 0:02:23.120 --> 0:02:25.440 Why would this make him angry but not the butchery 0:02:25.440 --> 0:02:29.400 inside that factory? You know what the Bible says, Sasha, 0:02:29.639 --> 0:02:32.480 There is no getting around that. The scriptures were clear. 0:02:33.120 --> 0:02:36.320 Well maybe they're wrong. Then maybe they've always been wrong, 0:02:36.600 --> 0:02:38.880 or maybe I read them wrong. Maybe they didn't say 0:02:38.919 --> 0:02:42.080 what I thought they said. It was odd, how freeing 0:02:42.160 --> 0:02:46.920 that thought was. She made her way past a fondle boat, and, 0:02:47.000 --> 0:02:49.880 for no reason beyond curiosity and the desire to stretch 0:02:49.880 --> 0:02:53.560 her muscles, Sasha started to climb upwards. The gantries that 0:02:53.600 --> 0:02:56.000 made up the bulk of Rolling Fox Walking Space were 0:02:56.080 --> 0:02:59.560 fairly easy for a human to traverse. They had high walls, 0:02:59.560 --> 0:03:02.200 so even the very drunk were unlikely to fall, and 0:03:02.280 --> 0:03:04.800 in spite of the city's clutter and bustle. Its designers 0:03:04.840 --> 0:03:07.240 had done a good job of making two clear lanes 0:03:07.280 --> 0:03:10.600 for foot traffic, but the gantries only gave Sasha access 0:03:10.639 --> 0:03:13.440 to a handful of the strange, glittering buildings that dotted 0:03:13.480 --> 0:03:17.120 the city's rolling superstructure, so she left them and she 0:03:17.240 --> 0:03:20.400 climbed up. It was not an easy climb. Here and 0:03:20.440 --> 0:03:23.120 there she found small sections of ladder or knotted rope 0:03:23.120 --> 0:03:25.680 to ease her passage. For the most part, though she 0:03:25.760 --> 0:03:28.960 climbed hand over hand up the criss crossed metal girders. 0:03:28.960 --> 0:03:32.120 She passed several buildings filled with people drinking and partying. 0:03:32.520 --> 0:03:35.320 Sasha didn't stop to talk. The climb was hard, but 0:03:35.360 --> 0:03:38.280 at least it allowed her to avoid awkward conversation with 0:03:38.280 --> 0:03:41.520 whatever manner of creatures lived in this place. By the 0:03:41.520 --> 0:03:44.040 time she reached the top of the spindle, Sasha's body 0:03:44.120 --> 0:03:46.520 was drenched in sweat and her arms were too sore 0:03:46.600 --> 0:03:49.440 to pull her up one more foot. She was grateful 0:03:49.480 --> 0:03:51.800 to whoever had decided to cap this spindle with a 0:03:51.840 --> 0:03:54.560 tiny purple shack, and she was even more grateful that 0:03:54.600 --> 0:03:58.880 the shack appeared unoccupied. Sasha pulled herself inside and collapsed 0:03:58.880 --> 0:04:01.160 on the floor for a while. It was all she 0:04:01.160 --> 0:04:04.320 could do to regain her breath. She wondered, in a 0:04:04.400 --> 0:04:07.480 vague sort of way, if she'd just broken into someone's home. 0:04:08.200 --> 0:04:10.520 Nobody had warned her that there would be certain places 0:04:10.560 --> 0:04:12.920 she couldn't travel here, but no one had told her 0:04:13.000 --> 0:04:15.960 much of anything at all. After she'd arrived, Sasha took 0:04:16.000 --> 0:04:19.520 stock of her surroundings. The interior of the room was plush. 0:04:19.800 --> 0:04:23.159 The walls were carpeted in thick, cushiony velvet. The floor 0:04:23.200 --> 0:04:25.599 below her seemed to be some sort of black shag. 0:04:26.000 --> 0:04:28.919 There was a framed picture on one wall. Sasha didn't 0:04:28.920 --> 0:04:31.480 recognize the artist, but it looked like a cross section 0:04:31.560 --> 0:04:34.800 drawing of a handgun with fetuses as the bullets. The 0:04:34.880 --> 0:04:36.960 sight of it made her feel a bit sick, but 0:04:37.000 --> 0:04:39.359 there was also something about the art that drew her eyes. 0:04:40.240 --> 0:04:42.479 The center of the room was a low, flat table 0:04:42.560 --> 0:04:45.440 that appeared to be made entirely of mirrored glass. There 0:04:45.480 --> 0:04:47.360 was a pile of white powder on the center of 0:04:47.400 --> 0:04:50.600 the table, along with a strange, rectangular piece of green paper. 0:04:51.120 --> 0:04:53.479 Sasha picked up the paper and stared at it. It 0:04:53.560 --> 0:04:57.040 took her a moment to realize what it was. Money 0:04:57.279 --> 0:04:59.720 said a voice from behind her. Oh, it used to 0:04:59.760 --> 0:05:04.760 be once upon a time. Sasha frose stiffened. She turned round, 0:05:05.000 --> 0:05:07.679 not sure what to expect, but with an apology already 0:05:07.720 --> 0:05:10.280 spilling out of her mouth. I'm sorry, sir, I didn't. 0:05:10.760 --> 0:05:13.279 Something in the man's smile and the relaxed slump of 0:05:13.320 --> 0:05:15.880 his shoulders made her stop talking. He stood in the 0:05:15.920 --> 0:05:18.159 doorway of the little building, just a few feet in 0:05:18.200 --> 0:05:20.599 front of her. She had no idea how he could 0:05:20.600 --> 0:05:22.920 have climbed up and in there without her hearing him. 0:05:23.279 --> 0:05:26.040 She didn't remember the man's name, but she recognized him 0:05:26.080 --> 0:05:29.600 from the war Council. Those writhing snake tattoos identified him 0:05:29.640 --> 0:05:33.239 as clearly as a name tag. I'm she trailed off. 0:05:33.400 --> 0:05:35.920 He smiled at her. There was something about his eyes 0:05:35.960 --> 0:05:40.239 that seemed off wrong. She couldn't place it. His pupils 0:05:40.240 --> 0:05:42.839 were somehow different than they should have been when he spoke, 0:05:42.880 --> 0:05:47.200 though his voice was warm and friendly. You are Sasha Maarian, 0:05:47.400 --> 0:05:49.440 the girl who was brave enough to flee her home 0:05:49.480 --> 0:05:52.160 and family for the Heavenly Kingdom, and then brave enough 0:05:52.200 --> 0:05:54.560 to leave it when she realized what it truly was. 0:05:55.320 --> 0:05:59.000 His head dipped down into a slight bow, I'm Jim Shannon. 0:05:59.160 --> 0:06:02.240 It's an hon at a eat you, Miss Marian. Jim 0:06:02.320 --> 0:06:04.680 squatted down on his haunches and dropped his arms in 0:06:04.720 --> 0:06:07.599 between his legs. It was a casual motion, but he 0:06:07.680 --> 0:06:11.120 executed it with almost mechanical precision. There was something to 0:06:11.200 --> 0:06:14.880 his movements that spoke of terrible potential energy, kinetic force 0:06:15.000 --> 0:06:18.680 just waiting to be unleashed. It's nice to meet you, 0:06:19.000 --> 0:06:22.480 she said, because what else could she say. Jim smile 0:06:22.560 --> 0:06:25.960 didn't change, but his eyes did. His pupils contracted and 0:06:26.000 --> 0:06:30.560 then changed shape from a circle to a spiraling, rounded star. No, 0:06:31.000 --> 0:06:34.679 it's not, he said. That's not a lie to each other. Eh, Sasha, 0:06:34.920 --> 0:06:38.640 I'm weird. I'll move wrong. My eyes. As he spoke, 0:06:38.720 --> 0:06:41.640 his star pupils started to spin in a hypnotic spiral. 0:06:42.040 --> 0:06:45.080 Are wrong. They don't look human. I can hear your 0:06:45.080 --> 0:06:48.440 hotbeat elevate as we speak. I can smell codazol in 0:06:48.440 --> 0:06:51.680 your brain and elevated levels of blood glucose. I can 0:06:51.720 --> 0:06:54.240 see in your eyes that me say in this has 0:06:54.240 --> 0:06:59.240 made you even more nervous. Yes, she admitted, Yes, you're right, 0:06:59.560 --> 0:07:03.680 you are me. That's perfectly normal, Miss Marian. It is 0:07:03.720 --> 0:07:07.120 not an act of weakness to admit fear quite the opposite. 0:07:07.400 --> 0:07:11.360 You feel better, now, don't you? She actually did. There 0:07:11.440 --> 0:07:13.600 was a queer sort of relief in admitting her fear 0:07:13.640 --> 0:07:17.680 and discomfort in this man thing's presence. I do feel better, 0:07:17.800 --> 0:07:21.840 she said. Why is that admitting fear is the first 0:07:21.880 --> 0:07:24.880 step to conquering it. You don't strike me as someone 0:07:24.920 --> 0:07:27.640 who wants to live in fear, miss Marian. You do 0:07:27.800 --> 0:07:32.080 strike me as someone who seeks control, strength, power over 0:07:32.120 --> 0:07:36.160 your own life. I, she sputtered, I don't. I don't know. 0:07:36.480 --> 0:07:38.240 A week ago, i'd have told you God was in 0:07:38.320 --> 0:07:41.400 control of my life. Sasha looked down at her lap, 0:07:41.560 --> 0:07:45.040 suddenly embarrassed. It wasn't very long ago, but it feels 0:07:45.080 --> 0:07:48.840 like a lifetime. It was so peaceful, just handing over control. 0:07:49.720 --> 0:07:52.200 Jim nodded and leaned his head forward a few inches. 0:07:53.240 --> 0:07:57.200 That didn't end well, though, did it. Sasha shook her head. 0:07:58.080 --> 0:08:00.440 You traveled to the heaven the Kingdom with a certain 0:08:00.440 --> 0:08:04.520 set of beliefs about the universe. Those beliefs met reality. 0:08:04.920 --> 0:08:08.960 Reality broke them into little pieces. There's no shame in that. 0:08:09.240 --> 0:08:11.640 It happens to all of us. Now you're a bit 0:08:11.680 --> 0:08:15.520 older and a few bits wiser. She looked up at him. 0:08:15.520 --> 0:08:19.040 His smile seemed somehow softer. Now she felt like opening up, 0:08:19.200 --> 0:08:22.520 confiding in this stranger. Sasha wondered if that was another 0:08:22.600 --> 0:08:26.200 aspect of his modifications, some alteration of his body chemistry 0:08:26.200 --> 0:08:28.960 and physical appearance that allowed him to seem more familiar 0:08:28.960 --> 0:08:32.920 and trustworthy to her. She opened up, anyway, I just 0:08:32.920 --> 0:08:34.800 don't know what to do now. I guess I could 0:08:34.800 --> 0:08:36.400 go home, but I don't think I was wrong in 0:08:36.480 --> 0:08:39.160 leaving home. I don't want a life in the American Federation. 0:08:39.640 --> 0:08:42.960 I know that. I just you don't know what's right, 0:08:43.559 --> 0:08:45.760 Jim finished, in a voice that was gentler than she 0:08:45.760 --> 0:08:48.760 would have guessed he was capable of sounding. She nodded 0:08:48.800 --> 0:08:51.640 as she struggled for her next words. I know I 0:08:51.679 --> 0:08:53.960 can't go back. I don't know where to go next. 0:08:54.280 --> 0:08:56.760 I don't have any money or really any useful skills, 0:08:56.880 --> 0:09:00.240 so I can't go to California or Cascadia. I doubt 0:09:00.280 --> 0:09:02.360 this place will take me, she gestured down at the 0:09:02.440 --> 0:09:04.880 rolling city below them, And even if they would, I 0:09:05.000 --> 0:09:09.280 don't really feel comfortable here either. Hm. Jim nodded and 0:09:09.360 --> 0:09:13.040 leaned back. Perhaps he said, you should weary, less about 0:09:13.040 --> 0:09:15.439 where you want to end up and more about what 0:09:15.520 --> 0:09:19.240 you want to end up doing. I don't have any options, 0:09:19.400 --> 0:09:22.320 Sasha said, fighting down a rising panic that tickled the 0:09:22.320 --> 0:09:25.040 back of her throat. I didn't even finish high school. 0:09:25.080 --> 0:09:27.400 I've spent the last two years preparing to join the Kingdom. 0:09:27.440 --> 0:09:30.320 I don't know how to do anything useful. That's where 0:09:30.320 --> 0:09:33.720 you're wrong, Jim said, in a firm voice. You lied 0:09:33.800 --> 0:09:36.320 well enough to hide your intention from your parents and 0:09:36.360 --> 0:09:40.160 am fed law enforcement. You did that for years. Sasha 0:09:40.200 --> 0:09:42.760 wanted to argue that she hadn't lied, not according to 0:09:42.800 --> 0:09:45.720 Pastor Mike's definition of the word, but she stayed silent 0:09:45.720 --> 0:09:48.640 while he spoke. You escaped from one of the most 0:09:48.679 --> 0:09:52.000 fortified botas in the world, Jim continued, And you did 0:09:52.080 --> 0:09:55.640 useful work in a medical facility. Then you helped facilitate 0:09:55.679 --> 0:09:58.880 the escape of several prisoners from the Kingdom jail. You 0:09:58.960 --> 0:10:02.120 functioned effective in a firefight and killed a trained soldier 0:10:02.120 --> 0:10:04.920 in hand to hand combat. Then you killed another man 0:10:05.040 --> 0:10:08.080 and stole a vehicle to aid your comrades in an escape. 0:10:08.400 --> 0:10:12.640 Am I missing anything? Sasha looked down again. She didn't speak. 0:10:12.920 --> 0:10:15.920 She felt bad about taking praise for murder, especially for 0:10:16.000 --> 0:10:19.160 Darrell's murder. She did, however, feel a tiny swell of 0:10:19.200 --> 0:10:22.240 pride at Jim's words. It was immediately accompanied by a 0:10:22.240 --> 0:10:25.720 flood of guilt. Killing is not something to be proud of, 0:10:25.960 --> 0:10:30.360 she said, Oh I disagree, Jim chuckled. Killing is a 0:10:30.440 --> 0:10:34.440 highly technical skill, and you've proven yourself a talented amateur. 0:10:34.920 --> 0:10:37.160 With some training and a spot of chrome, you could 0:10:37.240 --> 0:10:41.280 really be something. He trailed off. Sasha was quiet for 0:10:41.320 --> 0:10:43.760 a moment. She looked into Jim's eyes and tried to 0:10:43.800 --> 0:10:47.360 read something in them that proved a fool's Errand there 0:10:47.400 --> 0:10:50.200 was nothing in those orbs but cool confidence, And even 0:10:50.240 --> 0:10:53.240 that might be false. What did any gesture or look 0:10:53.320 --> 0:10:55.720 mean from a man who could control every aspect of 0:10:55.760 --> 0:10:58.920 his body right down to his pupils. I don't want 0:10:58.920 --> 0:11:01.320 to get better at killing, she told him. I don't 0:11:01.320 --> 0:11:05.240 want to fill my body with unnatural things. Just thinking 0:11:05.240 --> 0:11:09.280 about it makes me feel ill. And yet Jim said, 0:11:09.800 --> 0:11:13.440 what do you mean? And yet she asked, And yet 0:11:13.600 --> 0:11:16.760 that thought intrigues you too. It's no use, hadn't it. 0:11:17.040 --> 0:11:20.680 I can taste deceit. Sasha shuddered a little at that, 0:11:21.040 --> 0:11:23.439 but she couldn't deny that he was right, as much 0:11:23.440 --> 0:11:25.840 as the idea repulsed her. She'd spent too much time 0:11:25.880 --> 0:11:29.720 powerless to not crave power. I'm not looking to push 0:11:29.720 --> 0:11:32.800 you into anything, Sasha, but I would like to provide 0:11:32.840 --> 0:11:36.840 you with a unique opportunity. What do you mean, she asked. 0:11:37.400 --> 0:11:39.880 He smiled, plopped down on his butt, and swung his 0:11:40.000 --> 0:11:42.400 legs in to sit cross leg give on the shag carpet. 0:11:42.960 --> 0:11:45.480 Jim stuck a finger into the thick black fibers of 0:11:45.480 --> 0:11:48.319 the carpet and started tugging at them. It was an idle, 0:11:48.520 --> 0:11:51.960 nervous gesture, and Sasha found it oddly endearing. Part of 0:11:52.000 --> 0:11:55.240 her suspected that had been his goal. I mean that 0:11:55.320 --> 0:11:58.000 I would be willing to take you on as a project. 0:11:58.760 --> 0:12:04.480 A project, he nodded. My organization has access to skilled surgeons, 0:12:04.600 --> 0:12:08.040 military grade agmatics, and vat growing organs. I'll front the 0:12:08.080 --> 0:12:11.240 bill and I'll train you, and in return, you'll work 0:12:11.280 --> 0:12:15.599 for me forever, she asked. Jim laughed. She felt a 0:12:15.640 --> 0:12:17.680 little annoyed by that, and it must have shown on 0:12:17.720 --> 0:12:22.440 her face because he stopped Sary Sara. He said, it's 0:12:22.520 --> 0:12:25.600 just that be debt, slavery, you must not know this, 0:12:25.760 --> 0:12:28.000 but I helped kill the last country that lived on 0:12:28.040 --> 0:12:31.240 this land in that sort of thing. So how much 0:12:31.280 --> 0:12:35.120 time would I owe you, Sasha asked? Five years, he said. 0:12:35.600 --> 0:12:38.800 Sasha's heart trembled with excitement at the offer. When she 0:12:38.920 --> 0:12:41.439 thought about the way the adrenaline had coursed through her 0:12:41.520 --> 0:12:44.120 during the fight in the clinic, she wanted to say yes, 0:12:44.720 --> 0:12:47.000 But when she thought about Darrell bleeding out next to 0:12:47.080 --> 0:12:51.280 his car, the shame inside her overwhelmed everything else. Sasha 0:12:51.360 --> 0:12:54.319 knew she couldn't handle more weights like that on her conscience. 0:12:55.280 --> 0:12:57.600 I don't want to kill people, she said in a 0:12:57.679 --> 0:13:03.280 tiny voice. Shame dripped from resyllable That's fine, Jim said, 0:13:03.520 --> 0:13:07.080 his grin widening. We always need medics. You've shown an 0:13:07.080 --> 0:13:10.280 aptitude for that already. I have a feeling you'll take 0:13:10.320 --> 0:13:13.319 well to combat engineering. There's plenty for you to do 0:13:13.440 --> 0:13:17.480 without pulling a trigger. If I work for you, Sasha said, 0:13:17.640 --> 0:13:19.560 I have a feeling I won't be able to avoid 0:13:19.600 --> 0:13:24.800 pulling triggers. None entirely, Jim shrugged. But any shooting you'd 0:13:24.800 --> 0:13:28.160 do would be an immediate self defense, and you'd have 0:13:28.240 --> 0:13:31.720 the right to refuse an emissions that violate your moral code. 0:13:32.120 --> 0:13:35.360 I know that's important to you. The way he said 0:13:35.400 --> 0:13:38.040 that last bit set the hackles on her neck a rise. 0:13:39.200 --> 0:13:43.120 Is it not important to you, she asked, morality? I mean? 0:13:44.080 --> 0:13:46.840 He swung his hands out to the side, palms up 0:13:46.880 --> 0:13:50.120 in a vaguely buddick pose. When I was a young man, 0:13:50.280 --> 0:13:52.599 not much older than yourself, I knew a lot of 0:13:52.679 --> 0:13:55.360 gallant men who claimed to live by codes of honor. 0:13:55.880 --> 0:13:58.599 Such things were fashionable in the warrior culture of a 0:13:58.679 --> 0:14:02.000 Diyan empire. None of those codes stopped the men I 0:14:02.080 --> 0:14:04.880 knew from serving that great beast we called a state. 0:14:05.600 --> 0:14:08.920 When you see enough good moral men enable war crimes, 0:14:09.040 --> 0:14:13.160 you stop seeing value in the term morality. So what 0:14:13.280 --> 0:14:17.960 matters to you, Sasha asked, what do you believe in change? 0:14:18.160 --> 0:14:21.920 Miss Marian. He smiled, revealing rows of pearly white teeth, 0:14:22.280 --> 0:14:25.680 the snake tattoos on his chest and shoulders, writhed in excitement, 0:14:26.320 --> 0:14:29.360 I believe in change. I grew up in a time 0:14:29.400 --> 0:14:32.640 when the climate changed and my home became a deadly broiler. 0:14:32.960 --> 0:14:37.640 Politics changed, and democracy became a dictatorship of capital. For 0:14:37.680 --> 0:14:40.640 a time, I believed in the promises of change handed 0:14:40.640 --> 0:14:44.680 out by progressive politicians and scent of old revolutionaries, but 0:14:44.800 --> 0:14:46.840 every one of them was either co opted by the 0:14:46.880 --> 0:14:50.800 system or killed by it. He shrugged and cast his 0:14:50.840 --> 0:14:53.600 eyes down to the carpet for a while. Just a 0:14:53.680 --> 0:14:57.400 moment his mask slipped, Sasha saw a deep, yawning pit 0:14:57.440 --> 0:14:59.560 of despair in the tight lines at the edge of 0:14:59.600 --> 0:15:01.880 his lips, and the subtle twitch of muscles below his 0:15:01.960 --> 0:15:05.520 left eye. It passed, and a black velvet smile took 0:15:05.520 --> 0:15:08.880 its place. Then I met a man who showed me 0:15:08.960 --> 0:15:12.320 the way. Nothing new could grow on this continent until 0:15:12.360 --> 0:15:14.440 the weeds of the old were pulled out by the 0:15:14.560 --> 0:15:18.240 root and tossed into the compost pile of history. So 0:15:18.640 --> 0:15:22.160 he said, forget the old debates about what system should 0:15:22.200 --> 0:15:25.800 replace capitalism. Kill the state, and the seeds of a 0:15:25.880 --> 0:15:29.600 thousand new worlds will sprout on its corpse. You've seen 0:15:29.640 --> 0:15:33.840 two of those sprouts already, Sasha shook her head. If 0:15:33.960 --> 0:15:37.760 you're referring to the heavenly Kingdom, it's a nightmare. The 0:15:37.800 --> 0:15:41.120 old US can't have been worse than that, Jim shrugged. 0:15:41.480 --> 0:15:45.400 Depends on your perspective. I suppose tell miss Sasha you 0:15:45.560 --> 0:15:49.320 left the amphid the old U, say's most direct successor state. 0:15:49.840 --> 0:15:53.440 Why was that? Because it's a soulless pit, she said, 0:15:53.680 --> 0:15:57.160 the words almost leaping from her throat. Jim smiled at that. 0:15:57.920 --> 0:16:01.280 This isn't though, is it, He gestured out at the 0:16:01.320 --> 0:16:05.760 city of wheels below them. No, Sasha said, whatever else 0:16:05.800 --> 0:16:09.920 it was, rolling fuck was not soulless. Neither is the 0:16:10.000 --> 0:16:14.040 Navajo nation, Jim said, or Cascadia the black Stone Nation. 0:16:14.120 --> 0:16:17.040 Even the Mormons are up to some interesting things these days, 0:16:17.400 --> 0:16:20.600 one faction at least. So which do you believe in? 0:16:20.880 --> 0:16:24.600 Who do you fight for? He grinned again, Night the child, 0:16:25.160 --> 0:16:28.240 As I told you, I fight for change, to cast 0:16:28.320 --> 0:16:31.040 down the ossified bones of the old world and make 0:16:31.120 --> 0:16:34.720 space for the new. I owe allegiance to no national 0:16:34.800 --> 0:16:40.400 god save perhaps Lady Airis, who he smiled. A bit 0:16:40.440 --> 0:16:43.400 of smugness leached into the expression. She could see it 0:16:43.480 --> 0:16:46.200 clear as day right around his eyes. It should have 0:16:46.280 --> 0:16:49.680 repelled her more than it did. Airis was the Greek 0:16:49.680 --> 0:16:52.880 goddess of discord, back when people cared about what the 0:16:52.920 --> 0:16:56.720 Greeks believed. She set the spark that lit the Trojan wall. 0:16:57.080 --> 0:16:59.040 I know it's a bit silly reaching back to that 0:16:59.160 --> 0:17:03.280 old mythology, but I can't help myself. There's something about 0:17:03.360 --> 0:17:06.840 those old gods that calls to me. I can identify 0:17:07.040 --> 0:17:10.040 with them. He leaned in. There was an eagerness to 0:17:10.080 --> 0:17:13.840 his posture, his tone, his eyes. The snakes jerked and 0:17:13.880 --> 0:17:17.719 spun on his muscled chest and arms. I'm offering you 0:17:17.800 --> 0:17:21.280 a chance to join us on Olympus. Dear Sasha, you've 0:17:21.280 --> 0:17:24.440 spent your time in worship. It's time to embrace your 0:17:24.440 --> 0:17:29.040 own godhead, leave your antique books behind, and rewrite the 0:17:29.080 --> 0:17:32.840 world with your will. I don't know if that's what 0:17:32.920 --> 0:17:36.800 I want, Sasha said in a still small voice. She 0:17:36.920 --> 0:17:39.240 tried to ignore how much part of her ached for 0:17:39.320 --> 0:17:42.479 what he promised. The thought of killing again nauseated her 0:17:42.520 --> 0:17:44.800 as much as it excited her. But the thought of 0:17:44.840 --> 0:17:48.400 having power, the kind of power she'd seen Roland exercise, 0:17:49.200 --> 0:17:53.320 that was intoxicating. She hated how badly she'd started to 0:17:53.320 --> 0:17:57.760 want it. Well, you don't have to decide now, Jim 0:17:57.800 --> 0:18:00.800 shrugged his shoulders and gave an amiable smile. Aisle. The 0:18:00.880 --> 0:18:04.520 floor rumbled underneath them. There was a loud clattering wine 0:18:04.560 --> 0:18:07.000 as the whole structure of Rolling Fuck came to a 0:18:07.040 --> 0:18:10.600 slow stop. Jim waited for the scrunching noise to cease, 0:18:10.640 --> 0:18:14.159 and said, come and watch what we do today, then 0:18:14.200 --> 0:18:21.680 make you call Rowland. Dawn broke just as Rolling Fuck 0:18:21.760 --> 0:18:24.359 pulled to a long, slow stop by the shore of 0:18:24.440 --> 0:18:27.399 Lake Wago. The city had taken the long way around 0:18:27.440 --> 0:18:29.879 the reservoir, which had added at least an hour to 0:18:29.880 --> 0:18:32.760 their journey, but also put a sizeable water barrier between 0:18:32.840 --> 0:18:36.600 Rolling Fuck and the advancing forces of the Heavenly Kingdom. 0:18:36.640 --> 0:18:38.800 It had been a tight fit at several points, and 0:18:38.880 --> 0:18:41.960 Rowland had enjoyed watching the wheeled city crunch over several 0:18:42.000 --> 0:18:45.240 abandoned homes in many a street lamp. But eventually the 0:18:45.280 --> 0:18:48.400 pilots and navigators had found a suitably large public park 0:18:48.480 --> 0:18:51.960 and brought Rolling Fuck to rest there. It's a nice sunrise, 0:18:52.240 --> 0:18:55.040 Manny said. The kids stood next to Rowland on a 0:18:55.080 --> 0:18:58.520 wooden deck built onto the side of the main roller Skofucker. 0:18:58.560 --> 0:19:01.400 Mike had assured them this spot provided the best advantage 0:19:01.400 --> 0:19:04.120 point to watch the rising sun. It looked like he'd 0:19:04.119 --> 0:19:06.399 been right in that the sky around them was a 0:19:06.400 --> 0:19:09.040 heavy blend of red and orange that brought up fragmented 0:19:09.080 --> 0:19:12.920 memories of my ties and fireballs and Roland's head clouds 0:19:12.920 --> 0:19:15.560 clustered at the top of the horizon, ripe to bursting 0:19:15.600 --> 0:19:17.640 with the color and light of the new days sun. 0:19:18.600 --> 0:19:22.720 Roland nodded. Yeah, the shame no one who lives here 0:19:22.760 --> 0:19:25.119 gets to see it. Manny said, I've never seen the 0:19:25.160 --> 0:19:28.679 city this empty. Roland looked over at his young friend. 0:19:29.000 --> 0:19:30.960 The boy had seen a lot for his age, and 0:19:31.080 --> 0:19:33.920 Roland could see how much it pained him. Sorrow had 0:19:33.920 --> 0:19:36.600 as sent all its own. The plunging levels of nora, 0:19:36.680 --> 0:19:39.720 panephren and serotonin brought out the sharp stink of cortosol 0:19:39.800 --> 0:19:43.360 in the greasy odor of opioids. Lurking just below those 0:19:43.400 --> 0:19:45.960 smells was the odd, spicy tinge of the I L 0:19:46.080 --> 0:19:49.639 eighteen protein. Roland could almost hear it weaken the valves 0:19:49.640 --> 0:19:53.760 of Manny's heart. I imagine this sucks extra much for you. 0:19:53.920 --> 0:19:57.840 I mean, he's been where they are right twice, Manny said. 0:19:58.320 --> 0:20:02.159 Roland nodded and an't exactly recall, he admitted, but I 0:20:02.200 --> 0:20:04.280 expect I had something to do with the first time. 0:20:05.320 --> 0:20:08.480 Manny looked over to Rowland. Chemically, it was clear the 0:20:08.560 --> 0:20:11.880 kid was battling him a lunge of sadness, trauma, and anxiety. 0:20:12.359 --> 0:20:15.080 His actual thoughts, though, were just as hidden from Rowland 0:20:15.119 --> 0:20:18.119 as they would be from any stock human, perhaps more so. 0:20:18.760 --> 0:20:21.119 There were moments when Roland feared he was losing the 0:20:21.160 --> 0:20:24.600 ability to read human emotions or even display them properly 0:20:24.640 --> 0:20:29.320 on his face. Was that look you're given me? He asked? Finally, 0:20:30.000 --> 0:20:32.640 what do you mean? I can't tell what a look 0:20:32.640 --> 0:20:36.040 on your face means, Rowland explained, And I'm curious. Are 0:20:36.040 --> 0:20:39.800 you angry at me? Manny shrugged, and then he sighed. 0:20:40.119 --> 0:20:43.080 His shoulders slumped, his head drooped forward and down just 0:20:43.240 --> 0:20:48.600 a bit. No, he said, I'm not angry. What would 0:20:48.640 --> 0:20:50.840 I even be angry about? If you can't remember what 0:20:50.880 --> 0:20:53.359 you did back? Then are you even the same person 0:20:53.400 --> 0:20:56.280 who did those things? And even if you are, maybe 0:20:56.320 --> 0:20:59.000 you were doing the right thing. I assume someone was 0:20:59.040 --> 0:21:01.960 at some point that fucking mess of a war. Maybe 0:21:01.960 --> 0:21:05.680 everyone was, Roland offered. I know the heavenly Kingdom think 0:21:05.720 --> 0:21:08.200 what they're doing is right. Manny said, I also don't 0:21:08.200 --> 0:21:10.840 give a shitting dick what they think. They're murderers. They 0:21:10.840 --> 0:21:14.359 can all sit and spin. You're confident in me murdering 0:21:14.359 --> 0:21:15.679 the lot of them is the right thing to do, 0:21:15.800 --> 0:21:19.600 then I'm confident. It's better than letting them win, Manny said. 0:21:20.320 --> 0:21:23.160 Roland nodded quietly and stared out at the rising sun. 0:21:23.840 --> 0:21:26.400 The red had faded and the orange had grown brighter. 0:21:26.480 --> 0:21:28.439 He could see the shape of the sun behind the 0:21:28.440 --> 0:21:31.120 clouds missed rose off the field in front of them, 0:21:31.160 --> 0:21:34.000 and across the lake. A low light fog rolled in 0:21:34.080 --> 0:21:37.440 over what appeared to be an old golf course. You're 0:21:37.480 --> 0:21:41.000 probably right about that, Roland said, But where does it end. 0:21:41.760 --> 0:21:45.560 It ends when they're beaten and Austin is safe. Manny's 0:21:45.600 --> 0:21:48.280 words were forceful, but he looked down and away from 0:21:48.320 --> 0:21:52.320 Roland when he spoke. You know that's not true, Roland said. 0:21:52.680 --> 0:21:54.400 I forget my own name a lot of the time, 0:21:54.440 --> 0:21:56.560 and I still know you're full of it killing these 0:21:56.600 --> 0:21:59.479 fox buys Austin time, and probably not a lot of it. 0:22:00.040 --> 0:22:02.760 Are still millions of guns and millions of piste off 0:22:02.880 --> 0:22:06.119 desperate people in this ragged chunk of country. So what 0:22:06.160 --> 0:22:08.560